York City apartment plans get council's approval

City Council members on Tuesday unanimously approved developers' final plans for the Keystone Colorworks building, 175 West Gay Ave. The plan includes 50 new parking spaces, sidewalks, patios, fencing, and stormwater management facilities.

Developers Seth Predix and Jordan Ilyes plan to turn the 36,000-square-foot former paint factory, which was built in the 1880s, into 29 luxury one-and two-bedroom apartments.

Earlier this year, the city's Redevelopment Authority sold the developers the property for $92,000.

Predix and Ilyes also converted an industrial building in North York into upscale apartments, called City View Lofts.

Between demolition, street improvement and other costs, the RDA spent over $15 million getting the Northwest Triangle ready to be developed, David Cross, Chair of the Redevelopment Authority Board, said on Wednesday. It has been ready for development for about seven years.

The building could have been turned into affordable housing or office space by now, Cross said, but those options wouldn't have contributed to the RDA's mission of using the Northwest Triangle, the area in which the Colorworks building is located, to feed into a vibrant downtown. He said he hopes the apartments will serve as a "catalyst" in the development of the Northwest Triangle.

It seems like he will get his wish: "There have been developers sniffing around lately," he said. Ideas for the area include condominiums, office space, and retail, but Cross said the RDA hopes to "continue to drive it toward residential development."

Market-rate housing is key to the revitalization of downtown York, Cross said, because more people living downtown means more economic activity.

Rent for the apartments, due to be finished next spring, will range from $900 to $1400, according to the company's website.